Under Ying Yue's guidance, Ye Feng and the other two soon arrived at a square cabinet of unknown material next to the energy core. The entire cabinet was inscribed with arcane runes and embedded directly into the wall, rendering it immobile.
"Whizz!~"
Light materialized in Ying Yue's hand. After manipulating the arcane runes on the cabinet's surface, a drawer slowly slid out.
"This... this is arcane crystal?" Shen Yun Yao exclaimed upon seeing the layers of pink crystals in the drawer. After all, the mecha city possessed some of these, though they were spherical and used for crafting "fireseeds" rather than being in flake form.
"To be precise, it's arcane crystal inscribed with arcane runes!" Ying Yue chimed in.
Ye Feng and Shen Yun Yao were somewhat speechless. The arcane runes on the arcane crystal flakes were undeniably obvious; was there any need for an explanation? Did AI tell jokes too?
"These flake-like arcane crystals are the power source for the 'Civilization Seed Ship.' I hope you will inherit them!" Ying Yue looked at Ye Feng and Xiao Xiao and said again.
"Power source?" Ye Feng frowned. "If it's the power source for the 'Civilization Seed Ship,' what will happen to you and your ship if we take it? Didn't you just say the energy was insufficient?"
Xiao Xiao and Shen Yun Yao also cast doubtful glances at Ying Yue.
"These power sources... are no longer meaningful to the 'Civilization Seed Ship'!"
"The entire space of the 'Civilization Seed Ship' is becoming unstable, and it will completely annihilate before long..."
For some reason, Ye Feng detected a hint of sadness in Ying Yue's voice.
"These arcane crystals, inscribed with special rune formations, were created by the founder of the 'Civilization Seed Ship' with immense effort. They should not be annihilated here!"
"Besides, if you take them, they might be useful to you in the future!" Ying Yue added after a pause.
Ye Feng looked at Shen Yun Yao questioningly, as he had no expertise in such matters. After Shen Yun Yao examined them, she nodded. Subsequently, Ye Feng stored the nine pieces of inscribed arcane crystals into his spatial warehouse.
"Um... Ying Yue, why are you giving us precious arcane crystal flakes?"
"As an artificial intelligence, you are presumably designed to resist... intruders... You seem to be treating us a bit too kindly..." Ye Feng voiced his lingering doubts.
Ying Yue did not respond immediately. She turned her head towards the direction where the dark shadow puppet had been, then looked back at Ye Feng, and even glanced at Xiao Xiao.
"I see hope in you!"
"This allows me to break through the system's original settings and gain the highest authority to control the 'Civilization Seed Ship'!" Ying Yue said slowly under the gaze of the three.
"Hope?" Ye Feng frowned, a little puzzled.
"Yes!" Ying Yue nodded. "The 'Civilization Seed Ship' was almost destroyed due to invasions by the Blood Clan, Hellhound, and the Dark Shadow Puppet!"
"Both the Blood Clan and the Hellhound have been successfully killed in counterattacks by the Horus Guardian troops..."
"Only the Dark Shadow Puppet, we have no solution for... even if there was only one Dark Shadow Puppet!"
"And you just eliminated that Dark Shadow Puppet!" Ying Yue quickly explained to Ye Feng.
"What the heck! So that's how it is~" Ye Feng muttered, glancing towards the direction where the Dark Shadow Puppet had died.
"Then... are there any treasures in this 'Civilization Seed Ship'?"
"Keys to the 'Doomsday Ark,' the 'Stone of Hope' related to the Angelic Civilization, the 'Dark Divine Tome,' or something?" Since the AI was so cooperative, Ye Feng decided not to search like a headless fly and asked all his questions at once.
"The data bank has no information regarding the 'Doomsday Ark' or the 'Dark Divine Tome'... but there is information about the 'Stone of Hope'!"
"Back then, it was thanks to the 'Stone of Hope,' this extraterrestrial stone known as the last hope of the Angelic Civilization, that the 'Civilization Seed Ship' could be established!" Ying Yue said after a moment of silence.
"Holy cow! It really exists!" Upon hearing this, Ye Feng, Xiao Xiao, and Shen Yun Yao were all beaming with joy.
Subsequently, under Ying Yue's guidance, the three strode forward. At this moment, Ye Feng and the others failed to notice that in an inconspicuous dark corner, an eye within a broken glass bottle slowly emerged, watching their departing backs... Then, a flash of lightning streaked across, the space warped, and the eye instantly burst.
...
Below the floating island,
"Pfft!~"
A Jin, encased in a water sphere, suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, and the water sphere beside him shattered.
"A Jin, what's wrong?" Hai Chu Zi, seeing this, immediately rushed over.
"I'm fine... but I can't use the 'Shui Yan' anymore. We need to get to the floating island quickly!" A Jin waved his hand slightly, looking at the floating island above with a grave expression.
"Okay!" Hai Chu Zi asked no further questions. His body transformed, and within a few breaths, he became a seagull.
...
"Xiao Xiao, are you an angel?" As Ye Feng and the other two walked with Ying Yue through a dimly lit corridor, Ying Yue suddenly turned her head and asked Xiao Xiao.
"Wh... What?" Xiao Xiao seemed a bit slow to react. Ye Feng and Shen Yun Yao on the side also looked surprised, not understanding why Ying Yue asked that question so abruptly.
"Just now, the last remaining Horus Guardian, Horus Guardian Number 1, sent a message stating that you possess the unique fluctuation of angelic power, as well as the 'Angel's Blade'..."
"When you fought the Dark Shadow Puppet, a fluctuation of angelic power also appeared on you, but your angelic power was actually swallowed by the Dark Shadow Puppet..."
"This made me curious, because angelic power should not be swallowed by the Dark Shadow Puppet!" Ying Yue explained rapidly to Xiao Xiao.
"Ah!?" Xiao Xiao looked surprised, then waved her hand. "I'm not an angel... The 'Angel's Blade' was given to me by Big Brother... I don't really understand this angelic power thing..."
Immediately, Ying Yue and Shen Yun Yao both turned their gaze to Ye Feng. Ye Feng shrugged helplessly, as he also had no idea what was going on.
While they were talking, they had unknowingly arrived before a large door inscribed with a rune formation. Ying Yue stepped forward and directly touched the formation on the door with her light-formed hand. The formation was immediately activated, light surged, and then a heavy door opened.
"Big Brother, it's an altar!" As soon as the door opened and they saw the somewhat familiar, square, massive object inside, Xiao Xiao exclaimed.
"Altar? What altar?" Shen Yun Yao looked at Ye Feng with some bewilderment.
"Uh... that's a long story..." Ye Feng turned to Ying Yue and asked, "Is that square object the 'Stone of Hope' you were studying before?"
"Yes!" Ying Yue nodded and walked towards the 'Stone of Hope,' with Ye Feng, Xiao Xiao, and Shen Yun Yao following closely behind.
"It really is the same kind of altar I saw in the Goblin Kingdom and the Human Forbidden Zone..." After a thorough examination, Ye Feng was quite surprised.
"Battleships in the starry sky... mountains and rivers... an angel hanging upside down... cups and books on a strange table..."
"Why are these patterns carved on the 'Stone of Hope'?" Ye Feng murmured, observing the giant 'Stone of Hope' before him.
"Those patterns record past events!" As soon as Ye Feng finished speaking, Ying Yue chimed in, "This is also why the 'Stone of Hope' is also called the 'Stone of Truth'!"